Skip to main content

Collegiate Record Holder Fuwa Withdraws from National XC Champs and Mixed Ekiden


10000 m collegiate record holder and all-time Japanese #2 at 30:45.21, 18-year-old Seira Fuwa (Takushoku Univ.) has withdrawn from plans to run this Sunday's National University Mixed Team Invitational Ekiden in Osaka and next weekend's National Cross Country Championships in Fukuoka. The Takushoku University women's team made the announcement on its official Twitter feed on Feb. 14.

At the Jan. 16 National Women's Ekiden Fuwa broke 5000 m national record holder Ririka Hironaka's course record for the 4.0 km Fourth Stage, running 12:29 and passing 13 people en route. Post-race she was excited about running the Mixed Ekiden, saying, "There aren't that many chances for men and women to run on the same team, and I'm really looking forward to running in a new ekiden!" 

But in the team's announcement it said, "Everything going forward is for one thing: winning the May 7 National Championships 10000 m and competing at Worlds!" The announcement also said Fuwa was not running the National Cross Country Championships, in which she had been entered. The National Championships 10000 m will be held May 7 at Tokyo's National Stadium. As one of only three Japanese women to currently have the Oregon World Championships 10000 m standard, a win at Nationals would guarantee Fuwa a place on the National Team. This appears to be her new priority.

source article:
translated by Brett Larner

Buy Me A Coffee

Comments

RigaJags said…
Bummer,she likely would have won fairly easily (already did last year).

Smart choice to focus on the middle part of the year from her though.

I wonder if Miura will do something similar. I hope his training on longer distances won't affect his 3000 SC. I think he should really focus on that until the national and then world championship.
RigaJags said…
I know it's not the most appropriate article to comment on this again but since I left the comment above there's an update in case there won't be an article previewing the race:

Miura appears on the starting list at the official webpage of the 10km senior who he won last year. The exciting part is that in addition to Matsueda (last year second) there will be Akira Aizawa (at least he is on the starting list) and Kosuke Ishida (who beat Miura 2-3 years ago in the u20 XC nationals).
Furthermore Keita Sato is listed in the senior race as well (he won the u20 last year) before going to Komazawa.
Add in Ayumu Yamamoto (with a great 20km corporate marathon), Tamaki Fujimoto, Ken Tansho among others and this weekend's race could be amazing.

I hope there will be a live streaming available somewhere.

Most-Read This Week

Japan Announces Complete London Olympics Athletics Team

by Brett Larner Click here for JRN's complete video coverage of the 2012 Japanese Olympic Trials, 27 videos making up nearly three hours of footage. The Japanese Federation and Olympic Committee announced the complete lineup of Japan's team of 48 athletes for this summer's London Olympics track and field events at a press conference on June 11.  The team features 11 national record holders and 18 current national champions and is young overall, with a heavy preponderance of first-time Olympians including a World Junior gold medalist, 13 collegiates and one high schooler.  The Fujitsu corporate team is overwhelmingly the best-represented, boasting 8 Olympic team members, while Chukyo University tops the collegiate list with 3 athletes on the team.  Suzuki, whose Suzuki Hamamatsu AC club team exists outside the corporate league, also has 3 Olympians. No Olympic team selection process is free of controversial decisions, and the omission of women's 10000 m Jr. NR hold

Yamagata-Based Alexander Mutiso Aims to Be #1 in Paris Olympics Marathon

Having been named to the Kenyan men's team for this summer's Paris Olympics, Alexander Mutiso , 27, of the Nanyo, Yamagata-based ND Software corporate team, told the Yamagata Newspaper on May 13 that his goal for the Olympic marathon is "to be #1." Having lived in Yamagata for 10 years, Mutiso has strong attachment to the area and credits its environment for helping him develop, saying, "Ever since I came to Yamagata I've been running well." He left for Kenya on May 14 to join the Kenyan national team training camp, aiming to be in perfect condition when he arrives in Paris for the main event. Mutiso came to Japan in 2015, joining the ND Software team and taking up residence in Nanyo. "I don't like the cold winters in Yamagata so much, but the other seasons are nice." From that base he has grown into the athlete he is now, competing in races across Japan and around the world. Compared to the track, his strengths lie more in long road races

'Reinstate Olympic Marathon Prospects Unfairly Disqualified by World Athletics'

A petition for World Athletics to allow the ten men who made the Paris Olympics marathon quota via world rankings but were replaced by unqualified universality place athletes to run. Sent to JRN by the race director of a major marathon.